Christian pilgrims hold crosses on their way to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, believed to be the site of the Crucifixion and burial of Jesus Christ, during the Good Friday procession along the Via Dolorosa in the Old City.

Devotee Ruben Enaje grimaces as nails are driven into his palms during a reenactment of the Crucifixion on Good Friday. Several Filipinos were nailed to wooden crosses Friday to reenact Jesus Christ's suffering in an annual rite that has been rejected by Catholic Church leaders but draws thousands of tourists.

Actors perform "The Passion of Jesus" to crowds in Trafalgar Square. The actors come from the Wintershall Estate in Surrey, where they also perform a Nativity play in and around the farm buildings at Christmas.

Pilgrims walk across a tidal causeway while carrying a cross during the final leg of the Northern Cross pilgrimage to Holy Island in Northumbria. For more than 30 years Christians have taken part in the pilgrimage to Holy Island, walking through Northumberland and Scotland during Holy Week.

Pilgrims carry a cross as they enter the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Old City. Thousands of Christian pilgrims took part in processions along the route where according to tradition Jesus Christ carried the cross on the way to his death.

A wooden cross stands amid the tsunami devastation at a place where a church used to be. Japan announced a $49-billion special budget for areas devastated by last month's quake and tsunami and said it would extend an evacuation zone around a nuclear plant crippled by the disaster.

Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her 85th birthday by visiting London's Westminster Abbey, days before her grandson Prince William is to be married there. The monarch was there to attend the Royal Maundy service, an Easter tradition in which the sovereign gives out specially-minted silver coins to the elderly.

Palestinian militants of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine take part in a joint drill with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine for the media in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

Master Tailor Lance Sgt. Matthew Else inspects the uniforms of members of the Irish Guards at Victoria Barracks. The Irish Guards returned from active duty in Afghanistan at the beginning of April and are now preparing for ceremonial duties.

Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov of the Phoenix Coyotes falls into the net after allowing a third-period goal in Game 4 of the Western Conference quarterfinals of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Coyotes 6-3 to win the series.

Cal State Fullerton senior Janelle Truong sleeps on the floor of the school's administration building as a sit-in protest by students over budget cuts in the California State University system enters its third day.

Christian pilgrims stand in the Jordan River during a ceremony for the upcoming Easter holiday. The ceremony takes place at the site known as Qasr el-Yahud, where it is believed John the Baptist baptized Jesus.

A newborn baby pangolin climbs the walls of a cage during a news conference as the Thai customs office displayed 175 pangolins found hidden in a truck heading into Bangkok. Pangolins are listed as endangered species, but some people believe that the animals' meat and blood can enhance sexual virility.

New students react as a traditional tiger dance is performed during an entrance ceremony at Kamaishi Elementary School. The area was devastated by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, causing the ceremony to be held 13 days late.

Hindu devotees carry the temple of Goddess Tudaldevi into the pond in Nepal's capital where the goddess is believed to have lost some ornaments while bathing. Each year during the Gahana Khojne Jatra -- or searching of ornaments -- festival, devotees have a ritual swim in the pond in search of the ornaments.

Passengers in a bus react to a policeman who is aiming his weapon as he travels at the back of a police pickup truck with slabs of marijuana seized during an operation against drug dealers in Rocinha slum. About 3 tons of marijuana were seized and seven people arrested during the operation, local media said.

Protesters dressed as oil-addicted bankers pose outside the annual general meeting of the Royal Bank of Scotland. Shareholders cast votes on pay plans for the bank, which attracted public outrage after details of Chief Executive Stephen Hester's pay emerged last month. The bank is 83% taxpayer owned. Hester's approved pay package from the meeting reportedly was about $12.6 million.

Smoke is seen coming from the crypt of the basilica of the Sagrada Família, by modernist architect Antoni Gaudí. Fire erupted on Tuesday in a suspected arson attack on the historic Barcelona church, causing 1,500 tourists to evacuate, officials said.

Rebels man a checkpoint. Snipers, cluster bombs and intense shelling are spreading panic in the area of Libya, according to the AFP, as a doctor reported 1,000 people killed in six weeks of fighting in the besieged city.

A demonstrator uses slingshot during a demonstration against the arrest of opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who was charged with engaging in riotous behavior and inciting violence during protests over rising food and fuel prices.

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish boy burns leaven bread ahead of Passover, which commemorates the flight of the Israelites from biblical Egypt. As described in the Book of Exodus, they did not have time to prepare leavened bread before leaving for the promised land.

Killer whale Wikie, 10 years old, jumps with her baby, a female born one month ago at the Marineland aquatic park. The baby was born by artificial insemination using sperm from a killer whale at SeaWorld in San Diego.

The Week in Pictures | April 18-24, 2011

Each week we bring you the very best in visual journalism from around the world.

This week marked the 1-year anniversary of the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico that killed 11 workers and spewed nearly 5 million barrels of oil into the gulf.

As we head toward Easter, countries from all over the globe celebrated Good Friday, or Holy Friday — the religious observance of the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. In Germany, members of the Italian Catholic community in Bensheim took part in a reenactment of the Crucifixion. There was plenty of activity in Jerusalem’s Old City as Christian pilgrims retraced the route believers say Jesus Christ took along Via Dolorosa to his Crucifixion where the Church of the Holy Sepulcher now stands.

The conflict in Libya has claimed the lives of two photojournalists, Chris Hondros and Tim Hetherington, but other photographers continue to document dangerous street battles in Misrata.

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 85th birthday by visiting London’s Westminster Abbey, days before her grandson Prince William is to be married there. The monarch attended the Royal Maundy service, an Easter tradition in which the sovereign gives out specially minted silver coins to the elderly.

Elsewhere, a traditional tiger dance is performed during a ceremony at Kamaishi Elementary School in Japan; people enjoy the sunshine on a beach in southern England; and members of the Bulanting cleanse themselves in a river after their Lenten procession on Marinduque Island in the Philippines.